Adair County officials announced on Friday that they have selected to use Schneider Geospatial’s Beacon product for public information records. Beacon is an interactive public access website that allows users to interact and view County information, public records, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

Adair County’s Beacon web portal features a public site that includes important property taxation and assessment information, in-depth search capabilities, and property records. Beacon also provides users the ability to view an interactive map of the County’s GIS data and aerial photography, as well as convenient tools to collect specific parcel information.

Adair County Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Matt Wedemeyer said, “I am very excited to announce that Adair County is now associated with Beacon.  This will provide the public with a more uniform and recognizable online platform to access the County’s property records.  We hope to continue to develop the site to become a one stop shop for property research and information.”

Visit http://www.beacongis.com or http://beacon.schneidercorp.com to search for Adair County information.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety has released the names of the suspect and Officer involved in a deadly Creston shooting on Monday.  The suspect that was killed has been identified as 31-year-old Christopher J. Cameron of Creston. The Creston Police Officer that fired his service weapon in the incident is Sergeant Jared Auten.

An autopsy was completed on Christopher J. Cameron on Wednesday by the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner but final results are still pending.

The report states that Auten has 12 years of law enforcement experience. No further details are being released at this time.

The incident happened at 11:55pm Monday night after a call came in about a man with a gun sitting on a bench in McKinley Park in Creston. Officers engaged the man, now identified as Cameron, and he advanced on officers. He disobeyed orders to stop and drop his weapon and Auten shot him. Cameron was given medical aid immediately but later died of his injuries.

Auten was placed on administrative leave per department policy following the incident.

DES MOINES, IOWA – Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 2.6 percent in July. The state’s jobless rate was 3.1 percent one year ago. The U.S. unemployment rate decreased to 3.9 percent in July.

“Iowa hasn’t seen an unemployment rate this low in 18 years and the amount of help available to employers to find workforce is substantial as evidenced by the more than 13,000 additional Iowans employed now compared to the same time last year” said Beth Townsend, director of Iowa Workforce Development. “At our IowaWORKS Centers across the state, we are helping employers find employees even in this tough environment by using resources like the Work Opportunity Tax Credit and the Federal Bond Program that bring individuals with barriers into the workplace. We are bringing veterans to Iowa through Home Base Iowa, which helps businesses find highly motivated and skilled workers every day. So far over 600 Iowans have signed up to attend Future Ready Iowa summits across the state this fall to help their communities develop plans to meet their own talent pipeline needs. As usual, Iowans are working collaboratively to build the workforce we need now and in the future.”

The number of unemployed Iowans decreased to 44,000 in July from 44,900 in June. The current estimate is 8,100 lower than the year ago level of 52,100.

The total number of working Iowans increased to 1,640,300 in July. This figure was 5,200 higher than June and 13,200 higher than one year ago.

(Iowa Workforce Development)

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of a College Springs man on Thursday after responding to a domestic disturbance. Deputies responded to the call of the incident at 202 Iowa Avenue in College Springs. During the investigation 61-year-old David Eugene Lowe was arrested for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Lowe was taken to the Page County Jail and held on $300 bond.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of a Bedford man back on August 9th after a traffic stop. Deputies conducted a traffic stop that day on a Mitsubishi Eclipse on Highway 2 approximately 1/2 mile west of Clarinda. It was discovered that the driver 25-year-old James Robert Castillo of Bedford had a suspended driver’s license. Castillo was arrested and transported to the Page County Jail on $566.25 bond. He was later released on bond.

Agriculture affects the lives of Cass County residents in so many ways, especially the economy. To highlight the issues surrounding the agricultural community, a Farmer Forum will be held on Thursday, August 23, 2018, from 10 AM to noon at the Atlantic Library meeting room. Participants include Tim Gannon, candidate for Secretary of Agriculture, Cindy Axne, candidate for the US House of Representatives, and Denise O’Brien, candidate for Iowa House District 21.

The Forum will be moderated by former Des Moines Register political reporter Chuck Offenburger. Gannon, Axne, and O’Brien will talk about how we can best support and revitalize Iowa’s rural communities and economy. Each of the candidates will give a short introduction regarding their plans for the agricultural family, then opening up the Forum to take questions from the attendees.

The event is non-partisan and open to all who are interested in meeting the candidates and hearing their views on dealing with the multitude of issues surrounding Iowa’s and Cass County’s farmers.

Snacks will be provided. For additional information, you can contact Sherry Toelle at 712-243-4861.